The White House’s battle with the bench found an Obama-appointed judge fit to be tied regarding her unmet demands in the case of a deported alleged MS-13 gang member.
Judicial activism remained a keystone of opposition to President Donald Trump’s second administration as leftists judge-shopped across the country to bring scores of legal challenges against executive authority. Now, U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis of Maryland is attempting to exert her own authority by unleashing on the Justice Department attorneys, claiming, “Nothing has been done. Nothing,” following her orders in the case of Salvadoran national Kilmar Abrego Garcia.
Ordering two weeks of discovery along with depositions from Trump officials to be completed by April 23, Xinis sought answers on what steps have been taken to meet her demands that the White House act toward bringing Abrego Garcia, accused of involvement with human trafficking, from the Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) in El Salvador to the United States.
“What the record shows is that nothing has been done. Nothing. I asked for reports from individuals with direct knowledge, and I’ve gotten very little information of any value,” the judge said during a hearing Tuesday as she insisted attorneys clear their schedules.
“There are no business hours while we do this — there are going to be two intense weeks of discovery,” asserted Xinis. “Cancel vacation, cancel other appointments. I’m usually pretty good about that in my courtroom, but not this time. It won’t be a convenience issue.”
“You lost. This is now about the scope of the remedy,” contended the judge with regard to Justice Department attorney Drew Ensign’s suggestion that “we don’t believe discovery is appropriate.”
Since the Supreme Court weighed in on the case, the White House has maintained that the court had no authority to dictate the executive branch’s conduct in foreign relations and that the administration was not required to attempt to see Abrego Garcia relocated. Likewise, Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele remarked during his Oval Office meeting Monday, “I don’t have the power to return [Abrego Garcia] to the United States. We’re not very fond of releasing terrorists into our country.”
“If he appears at a port of entry or U.S. Embassy we will facilitate his return,” suggested Ensign as the administration detailed, were Abrego Garcia to somehow make his way back to U.S. soil, he would be “subject to detention” by the Department of Homeland Security and likely be removed back to El Salvador or deported to another country “because of his membership in MS-13, a designated foreign terrorist organization.”
BREAKING: Trump administration just told the judge that if Kilmar Abrego Garcia makes his way back to the U.S., he will immediately be detained and deported back to El Salvador – court filing pic.twitter.com/W5n1KTdSHp
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) April 15, 2025
Remaining unsatisfied, Xinis insisted, “The bottom line is it was a very simple directive. My question, that the high court squarely affirmed I can ask, is what have you done? I’ve gotten nothing. I’ve gotten no real response, nor have I gotten any legitimate reason.”
In an attempt to meet the judge’s demands, the Justice Department submitted a transcript of Trump’s meeting with Bukele, to which she responded, “No press release is going to move the court.”
“We’re going to move. There will be no tolerance for gamesmanship and grandstanding,” added Xinis who gave the alleged gang member’s attorneys the ability to subpoena up to two additional people and for documents toward collecting “evidence concerning: (1) the current physical location and custodial status of Abrego Garcia; (2) what steps, if any, Defendants have taken to facilitate Abrego Garcia’s immediate return to the United States; and (3) what additional steps Defendants will take, and when, to facilitate his return.”
For the time being, Xinis refrained from deciding whether the government should be held in contempt for failing to meet her demands.
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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